About Us: The story of Segway

The story of Segway

About our brand

How it started
One day inventor Dean Kamen saw a young man in a wheelchair struggling to get over a sidewalk. He realized that the problem wasn't an ineffective wheelchair, it was that the world was built for people who could balance. Subsequently he and his team created the Independence IBOT™ Mobility System, a self-balancing mobility device that enables users to climb stairs and negotiate uneven surfaces. After that, the thought arose that a balance machine had far-reaching possibilities for people with full mobility as well. Our inspiration for the name Segway came from the word segue, which is defined as "to transition smoothly from one state to another". Segway transforms a person into an empowered pedestrian, allowing him/her to go farther, move more quickly and carry more.

How dynamic stabilization works
If you stand up and lean forward, you won't fall on your face just like that. Your brain knows you are out of balance, because fluid in your inner ear shifts. It triggers you to put your leg forward and stop a possible fall. Segway does pretty much the same thing, except that our vehicles have wheels instead of legs, a motor instead of muscles, a collection of microprocessors instead of a brain and a set of sophisticated tilt sensors and gyroscopic sensors instead of an inner-ear balancing system. Like your brain, a Segway knows when you are leaning forward. To maintain balance, it turns the wheels at just the right speed and you’ll move forward.

Keep it green
As a leader in two-wheeled electric mobility, it's always been Segway's vision to produce environmentally friendly short-distance transportation alternatives. Today, more and more people are using Segway as an eco-friendly alternative for many of the short journeys that are typically made by car. Besides that, zero-emissions are given off during operation, allowing you to ride your vehicle indoors as well.

The story of Ninebot
Ninebot is a privately held company headquartered in Beijing, China. In 2015 Ninebot strategically merged with Segway, headquartered in Bedford, US. The combined company focuses on the research and development, design, manufacturing, distribution and sales of short-distance transportation products. The combined company has strategic headquarters in the US, The Netherlands and Beijing as well as manufacturing centers in the US and China. Segway and Ninebot are devoted to seamlessly connect robotic solutions to smart phones and integrate existing technologies and future concepts, such as voice interaction and facial recognition with its robotic products – products that will be highly interactive and encourage smarter living.